Antibacterial Modification of Microcrystalline Cellulose by Grafting Copolymerization

Microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) has the advantage of a high specific surface area as compared to that of conventional cellulose fibers. In this study the monomer methacrylamide (MAM) was used to treat MCC by grafting copolymerization. SEM, FTIR, and solid C NMR were used to characterize the morphology and composition of MAM-g-MCC. After the chlorination of MAM-g-MCC with 10% sodium hypochlorite solution, the grafted MCC exhibited antibacterial activity as a result of the formation of N-Cl bonds. The thermal stability, antibacterial ability, and storage stability of chlorinated MAM-g-MCC were also studied. The results showed that the chlorinated MAM-g-MCC had excellent storage stability and could inactivate all S. aureus and E. coli O157:H7 within 10 min.